Dosing basics: 2.5, 5 and 10 mg

Milligrams, not grams

Edibles are dosed in milligrams of THC per portion, not in grams of flower. A gram of 18% THCA flower contains up to about 158 mg of THC after decarboxylation; a single sensible first portion is 2.5 mg. The whole job of a recipe on this site is to take that 158 mg, spread it through a known volume of butter, oil, honey or alcohol, and then divide it into portions whose milligrams you can state on the label.

The three numbers on this site

Per portion	Who it is for	Where it comes from
2.5 mg	A first try, or anyone who wants a light effect	Health Canada's consumer guidance for edibles suggests starting at 2.5 mg THC or less; Leafly's dosing guide uses the same figure for new users
5 mg	Someone who has tried 2.5 mg and knows how it feels	Half of the regulated standard serving
10 mg	An experienced adult	The standardised single serving of THC in regulated edible products in Colorado and several other US states (Colorado Marijuana Rules, 1 CCR 212-3)

No recipe here is written above 10 mg per portion, and most sit at 2.5 or 5. If you want more, eat two portions two hours apart rather than making stronger food; the arithmetic stays honest and so does the label.

Why every figure is a maximum

The dose on each recipe is calculated, not measured. It assumes the flower contains what its label says, that decarboxylation was complete, and that every milligram of THC ended up in the fat or alcohol and then in your portion. None of those is quite true in a home kitchen. Lab tests of homemade infusions, as Leafly has reported, vary widely from the theoretical figure, and they vary downward. So the number on the label is the most that portion can contain, not a promise of what it does contain. Treat it as a ceiling and start at the bottom of it.

How to portion honestly

Level the batter or mixture before it sets or bakes. A thick corner is a stronger piece.
Score before baking, cut on a grid with a ruler after. "About twelve" is not twelve.
Weigh where you can: scoop cookies with a level scoop, weigh gummy mixture into identical moulds, weigh a nut mix into 30 g bags.
Keep infused ingredients to one per recipe. Infused butter in the cake and infused sugar in the icing means two sums; most people only do one.
Label everything: milligrams per portion, the date, and what the infusion was made from.

First time

Pick a 2.5 mg recipe. Eat one portion with food.
Wait at least two hours before deciding anything. Onset is commonly 30 minutes to 2 hours and can be longer (see onset and duration).
If it was fine, the next time can be 5 mg. Do not take the second step the same evening.
Do not drive, and do not mix with alcohol, which makes the effect stronger and less predictable.

If you have had too much

Edible overconsumption is unpleasant but, for an otherwise healthy adult, not dangerous in the way alcohol can be. Sit or lie somewhere quiet, drink water, eat something plain, and wait; it passes. Tell someone you trust. If anyone has chest pain, cannot be roused, or if a child or pet has eaten infused food, call your local emergency number or poison centre immediately.

Health Canada, consumer information on edible cannabis: start low (2.5 mg THC or less) and go slow, canada.ca: What you need to know if you choose to consume cannabis; and Cannabis: lower your risks, canada.ca/…/lower-your-risks.html. Accessed 2026-11-14.
Leafly, Edible dosing for beginners (recommends starting at 2.5 mg), last updated 2026-06-05, leafly.com/learn/consume/edibles/edible-dosing; and Dosing homemade cannabis edibles: why it's nearly impossible to calculate, leafly.com/news/science-tech/…. Accessed 2026-11-14.
Colorado Marijuana Enforcement Division, Marijuana Rules, 1 CCR 212-3 (standardised serving of 10 mg active THC for edible products), Rule 4-210 (a serving testing above 10 mg THC fails), text via Cornell LII, law.cornell.edu/regulations/colorado/1-CCR-212-3-4-210. Accessed 2026-11-14.
PubChem molecular weights behind the 0.877 factor: see the decarboxylation guide.